Module 1
2019
cotton yarn, wire, acrylic paint
45 x 115 x 5 inches
Module 2
2019
cotton yarn, wire, acrylic paint
55 x 100 x 5 inches
Module 3
2019
cotton yarn, wire, acrylic paint
60 x 70 x 5 inches
Transgenerational, presents a diagrammatic series of woven textiles aimed at unraveling the biological threads of multigenerational inheritance and deviation. Epigenetic Transgenerational Inheritance studies have shown how environmental and behavioral traits can be passed down from one generation to the next. These epigenetic influences are positioned above the permanent genetic makeup given to an organism by both of its immediate parents, in effect controlling which genes stay active and/or become inactive. Changes in epigenetic programming can be altered by exposure to external stimuli including environmental toxins, such as DDT, dioxin, fungicides (i.e. agricultural pesticides), Bisphenol A (i.e. plastic), and oil, as well as collective and individual traumas like slavery, 9/11, the Holocaust, mass shootings, and police violence, along with nutrition, famine, access to fresh drinking water, attention, and love. To reference these concerns, the installation is composed of many individual 5 x 5 inch woven pieces, some open and some closed, collectively divided into three connected modules housing pendent plains with structural masses built atop them. In a subtle narrative of evolutionary change, the work transforms from left to right, generationally; the first structure exists with small disruptions, the next one adapts to having more a stable form, while still carrying the weight of the previous units broken code, and the last one represents a 3rd generation of cellular mutation. This work as a whole also makes use of its medium and environment in a similar way to evoke mutation. Interacting with its environment in a different way than the typical paintings and sculptures that came before it, the installation takes transformative cues from artists who experimented with non-traditional materials like Lee Bontecou and Eva Hesse. Fusing the idea of painting and sculpture, the work exists on the wall, while simultaneously reaching out from it.
